The Omicron COVID-19 variant set off an unprecedented increase in cases and hospitalizations in the US. The nation registered 12.4 million new coronavirus cases between December 1, 2021, when the first case of the Omicron variant was detected in the US on January 10.
That’s 21% — more than one in five — of the nation’s 60.2 million COVID-19 cases since the pandemic began.
During the first week of 2022, 1.2% of Americans tested positive for COVID-19. The weekly case rate was more than double the pre-Omicron high in mid-January 2021, when 0.5% of Americans tested positive.
